Busy Writer vs Productive Writer: Which one are you?
By Zainab Muhammed.
If you’ve ever shown a paragraph as evidence of a day’s work, then you’d relate perfectly to this post.
Sometime ago, I used the word ‘busy’ often when asked about my day. Hell yes, it was a tiring phrase to use. And by tiring, I’m not referring to the number of times I had to use it. Using the word ‘busy’ was particularly tiring because I always felt exasperated. I spent the day doing ‘so much’ but when asked about my work, I realised it was difficult to say exactly what I had done. But I was certain that I spent the day working.
Of course this made me look insane. And I was losing it because I was certain that I wasn’t making stuff up. If you could recall having a similar experience as you read to this point, then you should pay special attention.
The above story is an example of what the life of a ‘busy writer’ is like. A busy writer constantly feels worked up but always has little to nothing to show for his work hours, that’s if he has his work hours defined.
A productive writer on the other hand isn’t found talking about how long he has been writing. Instead he talks about how much he has written. Spot the difference?
Flash back to a year ago, I wrote a minimum of one blog post per day. When asked about my day, I could talk about that day’s blog post.
Notice how attention was on my result and not my work hours? That’s what a productive writer sounds like — he discusses results.
Now that you’ve identified what type of writer you are, let’s talk about which writer is better.
By now, you must think me crazy for feeling the need to point out that a productive writer is way better than a busy one because of how obvious it is. Well I already stated it, and you can’t unread that.
A productive writer surpasses a busy one for the following reasons:
He manages time better.
He displays results.
He is happier.
He barely feels pressured.
Employers are eager to work with him.
He makes more money.
Now you’re thinking, how do I go from a Busy Writer to a Productive Writer? Here’s how:
Schedule time for writing: A schedule makes life much easier. Schedule a fixed time for writing and have the discipline to stick to it. Scheduling a time for writing certainly yields better results. Looking back, I realised that I wrote a blog post everyday after fajr salat. And on days when I felt very charged, I’d write another post later in the day. There’s no need to say I was highly productive, because my results were measurable.
Create a to-do List: Creating a to-do list helps you manage time efficiently. When you find yourself in a trance, you’ve found the perfect moment to look at your list to know how far you’ve come and what more you have to write. When I observed that I was more busy, and less productive, creating a to-do list helped me get back on track, and let me know how far I’d come.
Take Breaks: Working when you’re mentally stressed would yield little to low results. If you feel worked up, take a nap or see a movie. Do anything that makes you feel relaxed. I can guarantee that you’d be more productive after a break.
Eat healthy: If you feel stuck, put a good meal in your stomach and note how you feel after. Feel free to come back to thank me when you return to your task and find yourself more productive. Be careful not to overeat. Remember, I said “eat healthy.”
Prioritize Rest: As much as showcasing results are important, understand that the journey to success is a marathon, not a sprint. Take things little by little and make sure to rest when you feel tired.
Seek Help When you Feel Stuck: When you find yourself out of words and blank on how to progress in your writing, remember Google is there to help. Talking to other writers or anyone that might have knowledge about your topic also does the magic.
Follow Ifara Books: If you’re yet to subscribe to get notified when we drop contents on our blog, do that now. We ensure our contents boost writer’s productivity by 100%. Make sure to follow us on our social media platforms too.
Have a great one!
